


Between Iron and Silver

by WrathoftheStag (Mwuahna)



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: #EatTheRare, Chiford, Chiyoh on vacation, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, First Dance, First Kiss, Forgiveness, Jack Crawford on vacation, Jack and Chiyoh become friends, Lots of Food, Mexico City, Moving on in life, Personal Growth, Rare Pairings, Some tourism, more than friends, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-11
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-14 11:17:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8011558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mwuahna/pseuds/WrathoftheStag
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Three years after the Wrath of the Lamb, Chiyoh and Jack bump into each other in Mexico City.  The resulting days are filled with burgeoning friendship and self-discovery.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Among the City of the Gods

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to [Devereauxs_Disease](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Devereauxs_Disease/pseuds/Devereauxs_Disease), [Victorine](http://archiveofourown.org/users/victorine/) and Mr. WrathoftheStag for beta-ing the Chifordness, and for holding my hand with this one. 
> 
> Written for [Hannibal Cre_Ate_Ive's](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/HanniCreative_EatTheRare) #EatTheRare rare pairs event.

“I have no plans  
no dates  
no appointments with anybody  
so I leisurely explore  
souls and cities”

― Jack Kerouac, _Mexico City Blues_

* * *

When one greedily prays to both the sun and the moon, the response one will get may be delivered in the most unexpected of ways.

Jack Crawford first noticed her while walking through the ruins of Teotihuacán. She sat and sketched, away from others, from the tourists, and the pulse of the crowd. 

Nestled in a quiet space, overlooking the Avenue of the Dead, Chiyoh ensconced herself on the ground observing and drawing not the pyramids of the sun and the moon that were in front of her but the small boy just ahead of where she was, that sucked his thumb and clutched at his mother’s hem.

Jack could hear her voice in his head in that Florentine apartment, years ago...

 _“Where did they take them?” she asked._

_“Did you do this?”_

_“Of course,” she replied._

_“Appreciate it. May I ask why?”_

_“Why wouldn't I? I ought to. I should. Therefore, I must.”_

He transversed the space between them and stood a few feet behind her, the noon sun pounding above their heads. She sketched quickly, studying the boy every few seconds and then returning to her pad.

When Jack was close enough to be looking over Chiyoh’s shoulder, she spoke and said without glancing up, “I don’t want any souvenirs. _No gracias_.”

“Then I suppose it’s a good thing I’m not selling any.”

Chiyoh put down her pencil, and slowly looked up. The sun shone behind Jack, creating a brilliant glow around him. He slowly knelt down, and she took in his face; a face she last saw six years ago.

“Wrong floor?” she said cautiously.

“I’m not sure yet,” Jack replied with a reluctant smile.

There they remained for a few seconds until he put out his hand and said, “Jack. My name is Jack.”

Chiyoh wasn’t sure quite what to make of this. Her eyes quickly scanned the area. He wouldn’t try anything now, not in this crowded space. He most likely wasn’t armed, and there was a certain softness to his visage -- a softness she had not seen on the face of a man in quite sometime, perhaps ever. 

She then put out her hand, “Chiyoh.”

They shook, and their hands remained clasped for a moment, neither one quite sure what to do next.

“Have you climbed the pyramids yet?” Chiyoh asked, not letting go.

“I haven’t, no.”

“Well then, we should.”

“We are here. We might as well,” Jack replied as he stood and brought Chiyoh up with him. 

Letting go of her hand, Jack gestured toward the Pyramid of the Sun that stood before them. Chiyoh nodded and followed Jack as they approached the looming majestic structure, putting her sketchpad in her bag.

They quietly climbed the 243 steps, neither of them saying a word -- the occasional huff of breath and brief glance the only exchange between them. Once they reached the top, they looked out at the archeological complex sprawled out beneath them, walking parallel to one another, taking in the sight.

Below were several small multilayered pyramids and stone platforms. Small trees dotted the rows between. Strange to imagine that what was now a ghost of history, was once bustling with life, love, sacrifice and death.

Chiyoh finally spoke, “According to the Teotihuacán legend, you should make a wish up here. They call this place the City of the Gods. Do you feel any closer to god up here, Jack?”

Jack laughed, a quick dry thing, and said, “I was actually praying to these damn pyramids for some peace of mind. And what happened? You appeared.”

She smiled, a cautious smile, “They say god works in mysterious ways. I suppose this is proof.”

And so they remained, quietly looking out from the top of the pyramid. Chiyoh’s hair whipped gently in the wind. People all around them, going on with their lives in the most unremarkable of ways.

“Shall we descend?” Chiyoh finally asked.

Jack nodded. They began their walk down the narrow steps, Jack occasionally holding out a hand to help Chiyoh -- she, doing the same for him. When they reached the last step, they both smiled at one another. 

“Should we see if the view is better or worse from the moon?”

“The inconstant moon?”

Jack shrugged and smiled. Walking north, the two approached the Pyramid of the Moon, feeling somewhat bolder to speak and investigate one another.

“So... what are you doing here, Chiyoh?” Jack asked.

“I am on holiday, same as yourself,” she said adjusting her messenger bag across her body.

“Now why do you suppose both of us would find ourselves here at the exact same place, at the exact same time?”

She contemplated the various responses going through her head and settled with, “Because we want to get as far away from where we have been, what we have known. And what better place than here, among the ancient gods.”

“Have you? Gotten away.”

Chiyoh examined the pyramid before her, “This structure rises 135 feet above the ground. In it are offerings of jade, obsidian and pottery -- as well as human remains.” She appeared lost in thought for a moment, then added, “It seems that try as I may, the past wants to remain my companion. Death follows me everywhere I go.”

Jack contemplated his next words, and continued, “I think I may be a better companion right at this moment. How did you get here?”

“I took a bus from Mexico City.”

“I drove. I’m staying in Mexico City as well, in Polanco. How about we finish here and get something to eat?”

“Two acquaintances who bump into each other in a foreign land, having a friendly meal. Is that what this is?” She asked.

“Well, that’s what it could be,” Jack said, not really sure why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The ancient city of [Teotihuacán](http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/414).


	2. How to Make Anyone Happy

The 30-mile drive from Teotihuacán to Mexico City went by rather quietly, until Jack broke the silence.

“Have you heard from them? I may as well bring out the loaded question... as loaded as the gun you left me with back in Florence.”

Chiyoh stared out the window, watching the winding road fly by, “I could ask whom you are talking about? I could go through that charade, but I am through.” She looked at Jack, who in turn watched her with great curiosity. 

“I am living for myself,” Chiyoh said, “so since I am living for myself, I will answer for myself. I haven’t, nor do I want to hear from them. I can only imagine they are living out their lives, together, and as happy as they are capable of making one another. Do you believe that?” 

“I believe that you are done.” Jack looked at Chiyoh briefly then focused on the road, “And I congratulate you on making it out in one piece. Compared to some of the others, it would seem we won the lottery. But I don’t know if they are making themselves happy. Do they know how to accomplish that? Does Hannibal know how to make anyone happy?”

“You don’t know anything about Hannibal,” Chiyoh said roughly, surprising herself -- still protective after all these years.

“And you do?”

“No,” she sighed. “I suppose I really do not. That honor now falls to Will Graham, and Will Graham alone.”

“Fair enough,” Jack said. “It took me a long time to get to this point, where I can really just let go and let them be. I figure if they haven’t come for me by now, I doubt they will.”

Chiyoh huffed in quiet agreement.

“ _They_ …” Jack said. “Strange to me that Hannibal and Will are a ‘they.’ For so long, I thought Will was my man, helping me, helping us -- but he wasn’t. He never was. Will belonged to Hannibal the second Hannibal talked about bone arenas of his skull.”

“Bone arenas?” Chiyoh frowned, “Of his skull?” She let the words marinate and then laughed, a full body laugh. “That is pretentious even for Hannibal!” Chiyoh’s laughter continued, and it filled the car. 

Hearing a woman’s laughter, pure and bright, stirred something in Jack. It had been a while since he’d heard such a thing, and it filled him with a certain happiness. He found himself joining Chiyoh in her laughter.

They pulled into the driveway of the hotel Jack was staying in, Las Alcobas. The valet, Joaquin, waved and opened the car door for Chiyoh.

“ _Gracias_ ,” she said as she admired the hotel entrance. The dark brick flanking the expansive glass doors, and just inside she caught a glimpse of a modern elaborate winding staircase.

“Welcome back, Señor Crawford. Did you enjoy the pyramids?” Joaquin asked.

“Yes, they were very good,” he said handing Joaquin the keys to the rental.

Chiyoh stood by the door, but did not go in.

“What’s wrong?” Jack asked.

“I would feel more comfortable eating elsewhere. Not at your hotel.” 

Jack looked perplexed, “I’m not sure what you thought was on my agenda -- if I even had one, but food is all I am looking for.”

Chiyoh blushed, “Yes. Of course, I didn’t mean to imply…”

“But you did, and you did so splendidly. There’s a great restaurant here, but we don’t need to go in _my_ hotel -- or even the lobby. We can eat where you’d like to, Chiyoh.”

She bit her lower lip, and said, “I’m tired of pretension. It’s exhausting. You don’t really want to sit here in this ostentatious place, do you?”

Jack smiled and shook his head, “I have the rest of my vacation to do that.”

“Do you like _tlacoyos_?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never had one.”

“Then you shall.” They began heading south of Masaryk Avenue, and Chiyoh continued, “It’s blue corn masa, stuffed with beans and cheese and topped with cactus and salsa.”

“It sounds delicious.”

“Yes,” she smiled, “I’m afraid I’ve been eating them every day while I’ve been here.”

“And how long have you been here?”

“Almost two weeks, I’m staying in Coyoacán. I really like the area. And you?”

Jack held his arm in front of Chiyoh to stop her from crossing the street. “The light,” he said as cars began to zoom by. “I’ve been here three days.”

“I’m leaving in a few days. I’ve enjoyed my time here, but now I must move on and go further south.”

They crossed the street, “Further south? How much further?”

“Chiapas.”

“Chiapas? Normally, I’d be worried about someone traveling alone -- but I know you can take care of yourself.”

Chiyoh smirked, “Yes, I can.”

After a few blocks, they approached an outdoor stand where a woman was hand-patting dough into a flat diamond shape and setting them on top of a charcoal grill.

Chiyoh approached the woman, “ _Dos tlacoyos, por favor._ ”

“ _¿Con todo?”_

“ _Sí_ ,” Chiyoh said and paid before Jack could protest. The woman spooned mashed fava beans, pickled cactus, salsa, and cilantro on the grilled dough, and placed each tlacoyo onto a sheet of wax paper, handing them off.

“It smells delicious,” Jack said as he took his and walked down the street which was filled with well dressed people, shopping and laughing.

Chiyoh walked alongside him and quietly ate hers then said, “I’ve been alone so long, I forget sometimes how to make small talk and be sociable. I apologize.”

“No, I get that,” Jack said, wiping his mouth with a napkin, and sitting on a bench.

“Often, I just don’t see the point,” she said with a small shrug as she joined him.

“Ever since my wife died, I haven’t really seen the point either. I talk to people, friends send me emails, I respond -- but I’m not very motivated to _talk_ , or even interested. Talking is overrated.”

“I’m sorry about your wife.”

“It was three years ago, and I am just now feeling like I can move out of this cloud.”

“You are fortunate. Some people cannot even see they are in a cloud -- or just don’t care.”

Jack looked at Chiyoh and could see a sadness just underneath the surface, but it wasn’t just sadness, it was peppered with a bit of anger. She was wading through it, the way he had waded through the last few years, feeling as though he could finally stop sinking in the process, and come up for a clear breath of air.

“What are you doing tomorrow, Chiyoh?”

She looked at him, as she took a bite of her tlacoyo. “I had planned on going to Xochimilco and see the floating gardens I’ve read so much about.”

“Would you like some company?” Jack asked.

She wasn’t sure what the answer to that was just yet. Here was someone who knew a piece of her past in a rather opaque way -- but still, it was something. He was the one person she knew in all of Mexico; in the entire continent, really. Was she up to what he was offering, even if it was just “some company”?

“Look,” Jack said. “You don’t have to answer right now. You know where I’m staying. I’m in room 969. Call me and let me know.”

Chiyoh nodded, “Thank you.”

“Thank you for dinner.”

After they ate, Jack said his goodbyes. “Just let me know,” he said, and began to walk back to his hotel. 

Chiyoh stood on the sidewalk and watched as Jack traveled down the street, becoming smaller and smaller, and then made her way back to her hotel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Las Alcobas](http://www.lasalcobas.com/) (Jack’s Hotel)
> 
> [Polanco](https://www.airbnb.com/locations/mexico-city/polanco) (Jack’s area)
> 
> [Tlacoyos](http://www.themijachronicles.com/2013/04/mexican-foods-i-love-tlacoyos/)
> 
> Dos tlacoyos, por favor = Two tlacoyos, please.
> 
> Con todo? = With everything?


	3. Simple Pleasures

The early evening was a clear, breezy one in Coyoacan; the skies just beginning to ease into a shade of pink. Chiyoh sat at an outdoor table at the café Rafaella, enjoying her coffee and second chocolate concha. The simple pleasures of a sweet pastry, a cup of coffee, a cigarette, were all things lost to Chiyoh for years and she was now making up for that lost time. She waved at the waiter for some more coffee.

As she put out her cigarette, she suddenly remembered her first meeting with Jack.

_“You're sitting at Hannibal's table. You know him. You know Will.”_

_“I know them. They are identically different, Hannibal and Will.”_

_“Once I pull this needle out of your neck... then what?”_

_“My ‘then what’ consists of getting out of Florence alive now that I'm supposed to be dead. That leaves me in no position to stop whatever it is you're intending to start.”_

What exactly was she intending to start now? Hannibal once told her, "The most stable elements appear in the middle of the periodic table, roughly between iron and silver. Between iron and silver. I think that is appropriate for you."

The waiter poured more coffee, and she watched lost in the steam rising from the cup. Was she as stable as she thought she was? As Hannibal thought she was? She pulled out her cell phone and looked up the number for Jack’s hotel.

**+++**

Across town in Polanco, Jack sat at the Anatole Bar inside Las Alcobas having a glass of Scotch. All around him, couples were seated having dinner, sharing food and secrets in that way only couples can. A sommelier presented a bottle of wine to a table nearby and in that instant he was transported back to the bedroom of the home he shared with Bella in Baltimore.

 _“The young man at the dispensary called this ‘Purple Kush.’ He told me all his cancer patients love its ‘deep-body stone.’”_

_“You have a marijuana sommelier?” Jack asked with a chuckle._

_“Yes.” Bella said with a soft smile and then inhaled from the vaporizer._

She was beautiful. Even in the late stages of cancer, his Phyllis remained as _bella_ as ever. What would she say about his life? Would she feel sorry for him? No, pity was never part of who she was and what she was capable of. Bella would want him to move forward and find some happiness. He finished his drink and headed upstairs to his room. 

Just as he entered his suite, he heard the phone ring.

“Yes?” He hoped it was Chiyoh, before he had even answered.

“Meet me at 11:30 a.m. in front of La Michoacana del Bosque ice cream shop in Xochimilco.”

“Ice cream shop?” Jack asked, his question chased by a small chuckle.

“Yes, ice cream shop.”

“Very well, then. I will meet you there tomorrow.”

Chiyoh hung up without saying goodbye. Jack smiled as he put down the receiver.

**+++**

Chiyoh stood outside the _paleteria_ halfway through a milky paleta, so engrossed in her treat she didn’t notice Jack approach. He watched how gleefully she ate, truly enjoying every bite. 

“You like ice cream, don’t you?”

She stopped eating, blushing furiously, and said, “It is delicious. Hello.”

“Hello to you as well,” Jack said as he examined the shop behind her. “So, do you recommend any flavor in particular?”

“Mmm, yes! Actually, no. They are all wonderful.”

“What was that one?” he asked pointing with his eyes.

“Violet. See, there are petals on the bottom?” she said as she showed him. “But there is also rose cream, and avocado. Oh, butter! And I think I would like to try the pinenut one.”

Jack laughed, “You certainly love sweets.”

Chiyoh shrugged, polishing off the rest of the treat, “I enjoy food… it’s wonderful to have so many choices before me.” She threw the wooden popsicle stick in the nearby bin.

“Well, there’s nothing wrong with that. Why don’t you order mine -- whatever flavor you’d like -- and that way we can share?”

Chiyoh smiled, “Yes, I think we should.”

**+++**

“Bella and I met in Italy. She was working for the UN, and had men falling at her feet. They would call after her, ‘Bella! Bella!’ and I decided to make her _my_ Bella – if she would have me.”

Chiyoh studied Jack’s face, it amazed her that he still loved Bella even after all this time – even with her absence. It seemed to Chiyoh that love in its own way was a different sort of prison. It held you tight, not letting you go. They continued traversing the park, a small breeze rustling through the leaves.

“And you love her still,” she said.

“Yes, absolutely. I will always love her. Isn’t that the way love works? Most of the time.”

“You are asking the worst possible person. I have no experience in that area."

They soon found themselves among a small group of kiosks -- a cluster of galleries -- with various paintings for sale: soft watercolors, vivid pastels, bold acrylics. Children ran past them; the sunlight coming through the trees.

"Have you never been in love?" Jack asked.

"No. Yes? I don't know. Love, with a capital L, is not something I am familiar with. I find it ridiculous."

They continued on as they finally made their way to the boats -- _trajineras_ \-- that would take them through the floating gardens, as colorful green stairs descended before them. 

Chiyoh excitedly took in the view. Several large flat boats with covers were lined up and gently bobbing on the thick chartreuse waters, waiting for tourists to board. Each multi-colored boat decorated with a different woman’s name: Raquel, Katalina, Adelaida, Victoria, Alejandra.

“You loved Hannibal,” Jack said pulling her out of her private moment of wonder.

“Hannibal? Yes, but not in that way. I loved Mischa as well. I suppose for a moment there, back in my girlhood, I was surrounded by all sorts of love: the filial love Hannibal felt for Mischa even at a very young age, the familial love I felt for the Lady Murasaki, and the love of friendship I felt for Hannibal. Although at the time, I thought it to be romantic love.”

Jack gave Chiyoh his hand to help her board the trajinera Diana, paying extra to be the only two aboard. It sat 25 people, but they chose to sit side-by-side, 23 empty chairs and the driver their companions.

“So this possible romantic love for Hannibal, did you ever speak of it with him?”

Chiyoh watched as mariachi bands floated by on smaller boats, waiting to be hired. Some of the men jumped aboard the other trajineras -- people clapping and cheering their efforts. They sang of love and loss, and longing.

_“Chiyoh, you think you love me but you know you cannot,” Hannibal said, “You really should not.”_

_“You believe because I am young, because I haven’t suffered like you, that my feelings do not have the same value as yours?” she asked him, as they stood in the middle of Lecter gardens._

_“I am leaving tomorrow, and you should move on.”_

_Her tears of rejection, shone in the light of dusk -- the magic hour -- which illuminated them both. Hannibal walked up to her, and gently placed a kiss on each of her cheeks. He then walked out of the garden._

“I did, or rather, I tried. But he was right. It was useless and he was not good for me, or anyone at that time. He was kind in his rejection.”

Jack huffed skeptically.

“Foolishly, I pledged my life to his cause... and well, now here I am. I missed so much,” she sighed as she watched a couple on a passing trajinera kiss. “And I’d like to continue making up for that lost time Hannibal -- and Will -- influenced me to betray myself, and eventually I forgave Hannibal that influence.”

“Pledged your life to his cause? In what way?”

“Hannibal wanted to kill the man who murdered Mischa. I did not want anymore blood spilled by Hannibal... I didn’t want that for him.”

“He really loved Mischa?”

“Of course,” she said not quite understanding the question. “She was his sister. She was everything to him. So I gave my life for that man’s. I kept him prisoner, where he slowly repaid his debt. Ultimately, we became each other’s prisoner. Until Will Graham set him free, and then forced me to set us both free.”

Jack felt his anger toward Hannibal and Will rising again; Chiyoh a pawn in Hannibal’s life game, and later in Will and Hannibal’s macabre courtship. And here she sat, calmly making her way through the world. He admired her greatly for it.

After they departed the floating gardens with its hanging vines and glimpses into the quotidian lives of nearby families on the banks, they walked past several souvenir vendors. Jack glanced at them and said to Chiyoh, “I’ll be back.”

She watched as he went to speak to one of the vendors and then returned.

“Did you not like their wares?”

“I just had a quick question for them.”

“Oh, very well. I was wondering if you’d like to visit Chapultepec? We can see the famous castle in the forest.”

“I thought you would have had your fill of castles by now,” Jack said teasingly.

“This is different. It is all different when you are not alone,” she said with brightness in her eyes. “We can take a taxi there, but let’s get some coffee, first.”

“I just have to make one quick stop,” Jack said. “Meet me back here in ten minutes?”

Chiyoh nodded and watched him walk away.

When Jack returned, Chiyoh was waiting with two cups of coffee and two churros. She handed one to Jack and said, “I hope you are partial to churros.”

“I have yet to find a sweet I am not partial to,” he said with a chuckle.

“Where did you go?” Chiyoh asked.

He reached into his pocket and pulled something out, handing it to her. It was a friendship bracelet with her name woven into it. 

“As you can imagine, they did not have one with your name already made -- so consider this a bespoke friendship bracelet,” he said and then grinned.

Chiyoh blinked and stared at it. It was a silly thing, really... but no one had ever given her something like this in her entire life. It almost made her angry how affected she became by it.

She cleared her throat and said, “Thank you” and put it in her pocket. Jack frowned slightly and followed her toward the line of taxis waiting at the curb.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The area of [Xochimilco](http://www.chloevisitsmexicocity.com/chloe/a-day-in-xochimilco)
> 
> [Coyoacan](https://www.airbnb.com/locations/mexico-city/coyoacan) (Chiyoh’s neighborhood) 
> 
> Mexican [paletas](https://foodal.com/knowledge/paleo/mexican-paletas/) are [no joke](https://s3-media3.fl.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/JUQHDgiVcDd9P7lxBHP-Pg/o.jpg). For [realsies](http://remezcla.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/aguacate-paleta-700x933.jpg). I want [one](http://remezcla.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/paletas-michoacan.jpg) (dozen). 
> 
> [Chocolate concha](http://tarasmulticulturaltable.com/chocolate-conchas-mexican-chocolate-shell-pastries/)


	4. When You are Not Alone

When they arrived at the Chapultepec Forest, Chiyoh made a conscious effort to improve her mood. All Jack had done was give her a small trinket. Why was she reacting so poorly? 

When they exited the taxi, Chiyoh looked at Jack and simply said, “I don't know how to ride a bicycle.”

“Is that right?”

They both laughed at Chiyoh’s non sequitur and then she continued, “No, I really can't ride a bicycle.”

“You can shoot like your life depended on it, though,” Jack quickly added. 

“Lives always depended on it,” Chiyoh shrugged elegantly. “I was taught very, very well.”

“Hmm... I think I’ll pass on those details. What else have you missed out on?”

“Video games, movie theaters with popcorn, picnics, slow dancing with someone…”

“You aren’t missing very much with video games. Popcorn and movies, though,” Jack laughed.

Chiyoh stopped in her tracks and then added, “A decent first kiss. My first kiss wasn’t exactly... romantic.”

“How unfortunate,” Jack said not wanting to dwell on that too much. 

“It was Will Graham.”

“Was it?” Jack asked with eyebrows raised.

“Yes, he was my first kiss -- and he was incredibly easy to manipulate.”

“Your first kiss? That’s terrible.”

“I kissed him to prove a point,” she said simply.

She thought back to that kiss. Will had been trying so desperately to find Hannibal -- any connection to Hannibal -- while simultaneously running away from him. She found his farcical life so comical. _This_ was the man that Hannibal had tied himself to? Luring Will into the kiss was easy. 

_There are other means of influence than violence_ , she had said to him. And effectively showed this by kissing him, and then pushing him off the train. Idiot.

Luckily, there had been other kisses, after that first kiss. Allowing herself exploration of all pleasures, simple and complex, was on her agenda during her first year of freedom. She smiled remembering the Spaniard in Mallorca, the Dane in Copenhagen, the Canadian in Vancouver. All of them lovely, and with no strings attached; no need to converse, to “get to know” one another. 

“And was the point well taken?” Jack asked.

“I think it was,” she said with a smirk.

**+++**

“This park -- a forest really -- is more than twice the size of Central Park,” Chiyoh said admiring the vastness of the nature around them.

“You are, by far, better than any tour book,” Jack said with a teasing edge to his voice.

“I like to be well informed,” Chiyoh said nonchalantly.

“What else can you tell me about the area, Ms. Fodor’s?”

Chiyoh smiled and then shot back with, “There's an anthropology museum, a museum devoted to the work of Rufino Tamayo, and a zoo -- but what I find so humorous is that in the midst of all this nature and beauty, a castle was built. Entitlement at its highest…”

“Okay, Robespierre, okay,” Jack laughed. 

They arrived at the Castle of Chapultepec, where the Mexican Emperor Maximiliano I and his family had resided. Upon entering the bedroom of Maximiliano, Jack laughed. "Subtle. Very subtle." 

"Nobility knows nothing of restraint,” Chiyoh said. “Even the most reserved and simple person with a title cannot be held back."

The walls were painted a bright cerulean, with gold wallpaper accents. Above the bed, a gold chandelier hung; ornate crown molding gleamed in gold and glitter. Each room was an exercise in excess. Painstakingly detailed stained glass windows shone along the hallways. And as they continued their tour, Jack and Chiyoh delighted in finding humor at the various rooms in the castle.

“Hannibal would love that,” Jack said as he pointed at a gaudy blue vase.

“Too understated, perhaps?” Chiyoh asked.

They both laughed and were chastised by a security guard for being too loud. Chiyoh took Jack by the hand and they ran out toward the hallway, laughing still. Each one, momentarily forgetting who they were and what they had been though. 

They caught their breath and smiled at one another. Chiyoh’s face shone brightly with fractured colored lights that peered through the stained glass windows. Once the laughter subsided completely, Jack and Chiyoh looked at each other, studying, wanting to be let in, eyes intensely connecting. It was Jack who broke that contact. 

He cleared his throat and said, “May I have this dance?”

Chiyoh looked around the hallway, it was for the most part empty, “But there’s no music.”

“Don’t let that stop you.”

He smiled and extended his hand, and she took it. Both beginning a shy gentle waltz. The one, two, three of their feet keeping in time with their heartbeat metronome. Chiyoh smiled, a true thing, and Jack suddenly dipped her. The two laughing once again.

“ _No se puede bailar aqui,_ ” the security guard bellowed.

Jack held onto Chiyoh’s hand as they ran down the hallway, their laughter heard echoing throughout.

**+++**

They walked the grounds of the castle atop Chapultepec Hill admiring the sprawling forest surrounding them. Chiyoh walked toward the balustrade, overlooking the hill the grounds were built on.

She sighed and said, “I need to continue moving forward. I was stuck a prisoner in my mind, in that home for so long -- I didn’t even know myself. I am trying to know myself. Had I ever? Oftentimes I felt I only had two emotions: fear and devotion.”

Jack smiled, “You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t moving forward. You would have died a long time ago. You know who you are. In fact, you may be one of the most self-aware people I’ve ever met.”

She looked out at the trees before them, she didn’t feel self-aware, but she felt happy. So that was something.

**+++**

As Jack and Chiyoh walked back to find a cab, Chiyoh impulsively put her hand around his arm as he told her a joke. It wasn’t very funny, but Jack told it so earnestly, she couldn’t help but laugh.

Jack tried to hail a cab, with little luck, and Chiyoh said, “I am heading to Chiapas the day after tomorrow and only have one more day here. Would you like to see Frida Kahlo’s house tomorrow? It is near my hotel.”

“You like Frida Kahlo?” Jack asked, arm still up in the air.

“Yes, I do. I walk by the house every day when I leave my hotel and return. In her courtyard she wrote: ‘Frida and Diego lived in this house.’ _Lived_ there. What a declaration, isn’t it?”

“Then tomorrow I will see where she lived as well.”

A cab finally pulled over, and Chiyoh opened the door for Jack. 

“Are you tired?” Jack asked.

“Tired? No.”

“Would you like to go to a movie?”

Chiyoh turned to look at Jack, “A movie?” She smiled and said, “Sure. Why not? You’re not going to teach me how to ride a bicycle next, are you?”

Jack laughed, “Well I can see if the cab driver has some training wheels in the trunk.”

“No, I think a movie is sufficient in the ‘What Did Poor Chiyoh Miss Out On’ list.”

“This isn’t a pity party,” Jack said seriously.

“No, I know. I’m sorry -- I didn’t mean to rebuke your kindness.”

“People are kind out here, you know. It took me a long time to remember that. Hell, I was as guilty as most when it came to unkindness.”

She knew he was referring to Will. “I think one does the best they can -- or what they feel is the best, even in the most unfortunate of circumstances.”

Jack shrugged as he looked out the window, avoiding Chiyoh’s gaze and said, “Eventually, I forgave myself. And Will. He... just wanted to be happy. So I choose to believe he died on that cliff. And I can be kind again.”

Chiyoh studied his face, and nodded.

“So,” she asked, cutting through the silence, “What shall we see?”

**+++**

Chiyoh returned to her hotel by 10 o’clock. There were few movies that weren’t dubbed in Spanish and were subtitled, so they ended up seeing a cartoon about animals and racism. And while she enjoyed it, she found more humor in watching Jack’s reaction to the film. His laughter came from deep within, and she was moved by his genuine and open reactions.

The fact that he bought her a tub of popcorn the size of a small child also tickled her.

“Now, I know you are probably capable of eating this entire thing -- but for the sake of your well being, I recommend you show some restraint.”

He then sprinkled some chocolate covered raisins over the top of the popcorn. Chiyoh looked at him with eyebrow raised.

“You’ll thank me later,” Jack said.

And so they watched the movie, each laughing and relishing one another’s company, even if nothing was being said. And when they both reached for the popcorn at the same time, and their hands grazed one another, neither one pulled away. Their hands, barely touching -- their breathing hitched.

Chiyoh remembered that sensation and smiled as she sunk into her bed, and fell asleep with a smile on her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The [Castle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapultepec_Castle) in Chapultepec.
> 
> No se puede bailar aqui. = You can't dance here.


	5. A Blue Home

Coyoacan’s tree-lined sidewalks gave the cobblestoned street a decidedly more neighborhood feel. Jack could see why Chiyoh may have chosen to stay in this area. The bright cobalt blue house on the corner of Londres and Allende Avenues stood tall and strong, much like Chiyoh did as she waited in front of Frida Kahlo’s _Casa Azul_. In her hand, she held two cups of coffee from the nearby El Jarocho. 

Jack smiled, “Have you been waiting long?”

“No, about five minutes,” she said as he handed him his coffee. She took a sip and happily hummed, “I believe we need to finish these before we can go in.”

“Cheers” Jack said as he toasted Chiyoh with his coffee.

They leaned against a parked car and quietly people watched for a moment. A young artsy couple walked by holding hands; a woman with a haughty poodle briskly strolled by; an older man jogged, out of breath, dressed in head to toe Nike -- causing Jack and Chiyoh to grin.

“So this is where the great Frida Kahlo lived, huh?”

Chiyoh nodded as she finished her coffee.

“And you’re a big fan.”

“Yes, I am. It’s not just her artwork, but her life as well. She lived as she pleased. No one told her how to -- even with her limitations. Her life was her own.”

Jack smiled, “There is something to be said for living life on your own terms, isn’t there?”

Chiyoh nodded and replied, “And I’m working hard to discover that for myself more and more each day.”

**+++**

“I like it. It’s colorful and kitschy,” Jack said as they entered the ground floor and were greeted by a few of Frida's paintings. The next rooms held Frida's personal items, notes, jewelry, clothing, and some paintings by Diego Rivera.

And so they went through the rest of the home, walking past works by Klee, Orozco and Velasco. Jack's favorite room was the dining room with its bright tiles and walls, all in yellow and blue. For Jack, a kitchen always symbolized home.

_"...I'm going to remember that your hands smelled of thyme when you came in from the garden, and garlic and onions every time you left the kitchen. I'm going to remember you as beautiful as you are right now.”_

_Bella smiled at him._

“This home held all of Frida’s personality and warmth. So different from their studio and home in San Angel.”

Jack had no need for a visitor’s guide with Chiyoh there. The continued moving throughout the house.

“The architect of that place, Juan O’Gorman, was considered the heir to Le Corbusier. It was quite the departure from anything else seen in the area. Unconventional like Frida herself -- even though that place was considered more Diego’s place.”

“Unconventional, like their relationship,” Jack said.

“It was flawed,” Chiyoh said instantly. “I don’t see the romance in their destructive relationship.”

“True, marriage shouldn’t be a destructive, heart-breaking thing,” Jack mused.

“What is it like?”

“It can be difficult sometimes -- one of the hardest things to do. But then the rewards are just as great.”

Chiyoh mulled Jack’s words, and then replied, “In their home and studio, Frida and Diego had two apartments connected by a bridge. When they would argue, she would close the door on her end of the bridge.”

Jack watched as Chiyoh circumnavigated Frida’s bedroom, and stopped to study the four poster bed. 

"If I were to ever marry, I would want two separate houses with a bridge between them."

"Close, but not too close, eh?"

Chiyoh hummed, "Yes, but isn't that what marriage is? Two separate houses with a bridge connecting them?"

"I think it's more like two separate houses, coming together to make one home."

"I don't want anyone in my home."

"You will... you might. One day. Someday, I might again as well."

"What is it like?"

"Marriage?"

"No, love."

“I read something online the other day, where a doctor was going to perform surgery on a small girl. They needed type O blood, and had none -- but her twin brother was type O. The doctor spoke to him and said it was a matter of life and death to save his sister. The boy sat thoughtfully and agreed and then asked, ‘When will I die?’ He thought he would die, but didn’t give it a second thought. He was ready to do whatever for her. That’s love. You are ready to do whatever for the person you love.”

"It sounds ridiculous... maybe."

“It is.”

**+++**

Exiting the Casa Azul, Jack and Chiyoh decided to take a stroll through the neighborhood. Not far from the house, stood a small artisanal jewelry and clothing shop. Shoppers poured in and out, causing her to want take a quick peek. 

In a glass display case, front and center of the shop, were several silver rings which were mined from the town of Taxco. Shiny plain bands, chunky rings with black onyx, delicate filigreed ones with turquoise, rings with mother of pearl, all displayed side by side.

“They’re exquisite,” Chiyoh said as she paid particular attention to the mother of pearl selection.

“You should buy one,” Jack said. “Silver looks good on you.”

“Between iron and silver…” she said softly.

“Pardon?”

“Nothing,” she smiled, and asked to try on one of the rings.

After her purchase, Jack asked, “Are you hungry?” 

“Always,” Chiyoh responded. “Just around the corner there’s an open-air market.”

“Sounds like our kind of place,” Jack said. “Lead the way, this is your neighborhood.”

They arrived at the Mercado de Antojitos and Jack’s stomach instantly growled. Chiyoh led him straight to a tostada stand. 

“These are the best in the city,” she said with absolute joy on her face.

**+++**

After lunch, they crossed the street and walked over to the Plaza Hidalgo to see the famous fountain at the Jardin Centenario. It featured two coyotes frolicking in the water. The plaza was filled with couples, artists, tourists, children laughing and running.

“This neighborhood is named after coyotes,” Chiyoh said. “Coyoacan is Nahuatl for ‘place of the coyotes.’” 

They sat at a bench near the fountain, momentarily mesmerized by the flow of the water. Chiyoh then elbowed Jack gently.

“Here, try this,” she said handing Jack a plastic baggie filled with small deep fried crunchy looking things. 

“What is it?”

“Just something I picked up on our way out of the market while you were washing your hands.”

Upon closer inspection, Jack balked. 

“Are these... grasshoppers?”

“ _Chapulines_ ,” she replied with a devious smile.

“That’s Spanish for grasshoppers, isn’t it?” he said returning the baggie to her.

“I insist you try one,” she said barely keeping her laughter under control as she held one close to his mouth.

Jack shook his head vigorously, and laughed, “I was a frequent Lecter dinner guest. Haven’t I eaten enough terrible things in my lifetime, for crying out loud!”

He held her hand and lowered it, then placed his other hand over it. Their laughter slowly died down, as they both stared at their hands -- now with fingers intertwined -- on Jack’s lap.

“I propose we do something daring,” Jack said.

Chiyoh smiled, “Daring? Considering our past history, that could be dangerous.”

“Let’s spend time together when the sun is actually out of the sky.”

She stared at him, her smile momentarily leaving.

“Dinner. I am asking you to dinner, Chiyoh. Nothing more.”

Chiyoh considered then said, “Yes. Let’s have dinner.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Frida Kahlo [Casa Azul](http://museofridakahlo.org.mx/esp/1/el-museo/multimedia/visita-virtual)
> 
> [Coyote Fountain](https://www.flickr.com/photos/jaygalvin/13932445754) in Coyocan
> 
> [Chapulines](http://eatyourworld.com/destinations/mexico/general_mexico/oaxaca/what_to_eat/chapulines). Crunchy! 
> 
> [El Jarocho](http://www.cafeeljarocho.com.mx/), since 1953.


	6. Fair Warning

Jack had to pull a lot of strings, but he managed to get a table for two at Pujol, which was not far from his hotel.

Chiyoh arrived at Jack’s lobby at 7:15. She wore a vivid emerald green dress and smiled as Jack rose from his seat to greet her. 

“Long time no see,” Jack said, wincing at his own corniness.

Chiyoh smirked and asked, “Where are we going? Does it have a roof? An actual roof may be too fancy for us.”

“I got us a table at Pujol.”

“Pujol? Well, then I suppose it is a good thing I dressed up.”

“You look lovely,” Jack said.

Chiyoh blushed, which in turn made Jack blush and both couldn’t help but laugh. Here were two adults who had dealt with death and destruction most of their lives, killed in cold blood, and there they stood blushing like two idiots.

“Well, Pujol it is,” Chiyoh said taking Jack’s arm as they walked toward the door.

***

The food was delicious, as expected from the best restaurant in Mexico City. Jack ordered the "street snacks" as their first course in playful homage to Chiyoh. It was as far from street food as one could possibly get. 

“So are you ready for Chiapas?” Jack asked in between bites of zucchini blossom.

“Yes, I’m looking forward to visiting the jungles there, and the towns of the various indigenous groups. But I am most looking forward to Palenque.”

“Another archeological site to sketch more children?”

Chiyoh smiled, “Children are uncomplicated, and pure. How could you not want to capture that?”

“How long will you be staying in Chiapas?”

“A couple weeks perhaps?” She paused and then added, “After Chiapas I am heading down to Argentina.”

“Argentina? What’s in Argentina?”

“More food, wine? Tango? Gauchos?” _Hannibal. Will._

“Do you think you might want to stop and settle down in one place?” Jack asked, “Eventually?” 

“I’m not running away, if that is what you are implying.”

“One of my professors in undergrad had a funny little picture framed and hanging in the classroom. You know what it said? It said, ‘Wherever you go, there you are.’”

Chiyoh smirked, “That is simultaneously one of the most idiotic and profound things I have heard.”

Jack shrugged, “There’s something to be said for homespun wisdom.”

“I don’t know what I’ll do, or where I will end up. But for me, there is a such beauty in that. Do you see?”

“Yes.”

“When I do settle down, it will be somewhere I love. Somewhere where I look forward to rising from bed, opening my windows and adoring what I see outside them. Whether or not someone is on the other side of the window with me doesn’t really interest me. I’m having a relationship with myself, and that’s enough for now.”

“That could be enough forever,” Jack replied.

The comfortable silence that followed brushed up against the two, coaxing a warm smiled from them both. It was intoxicating in its serenity. When the waiter approached with the dessert menu, Chiyoh politely declined. 

“Why don’t we go to your hotel for a drink?” she said.

**+++**

The rooftop balcony at Las Alcobas had a lovely view of Polanco. Jack and Chiyoh, each with a cocktail in hand, admired the night lights which bounced from rooftop to rooftop. They turned to look at one another, and putting their drinks down, rose from the table to approach the balcony ledge.

“What a pleasant evening,” Chiyoh said as she leaned on her elbows against the balcony, hands dangling gently over the railing.

“Are you sure you want to leave all this tomorrow?” Jack asked motioning toward the view before them.

“ _All this,_ ” Chiyoh asked, as she smiled at Jack, “Or all _you_?”

Jack laughed, “Well, now that my foodie tour guide will be gone -- what will I do?”

“Eat more food from places with roofs on them, and refer back to your Fodor’s?”

Jack stood closer to Chiyoh, and mimicked her stance. His hands also dangling over the ledge -- their forearms touching.

“Fodor’s? I’m a loyal Rick Steve’s guy,” Jack laughed. His laughter subsided and he said, “I will miss you.”

Chiyoh stared at the city below, inhaling quietly, then turned to look at Jack. “I suppose I’ll miss you too.”

Jack smirked, “Suppose? Wow. Thanks.”

She smiled and stroked his forearm, then left her hand on his.

“I have no business asking you to stay longer,” Jack said quietly.

“No, you don’t.”

“I appreciate a woman who says what is on her mind,” Jack said jovially. 

Chiyoh gently squeezed Jack’s hand and said, “I was once called Hannibal's biggest mistake.” She wasn’t sure exactly why she said that. 

“No, that honor now belongs to Will Graham,” he said with a soft smile, repeating the words she had spoken to him two days earlier.

"Will Graham,” she said and quietly added, “Yes, the first man I kissed…” She then turned to look at Jack, “and then I pushed him off a train." 

“I am sure he deserved it,” Jack said as his eyes brushed across Chiyoh’s face.

Chiyoh nodded slowly, her lips parting ever so slightly. Jack gripped the handle of the balcony. 

"Fair warning," he whispered and then leaned in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Pujol](http://www.pujol.com.mx/en/) restaurant.


	7. Steady Hands and Heart

How they made it back to Jack’s suite, neither one was sure exactly. Chiyoh lowered herself onto Jack’s bed as he began to unbutton her dress. The rest of the evening was a blur to them both. 

For Jack it was the first time he had been with a woman since Bella. It was strange, but comfortable. He had quickly found a certain sense of familiarity and safety with Chiyoh; this was but an extension of that. 

For Chiyoh it was the first time she had shared herself with someone she knew, someone she genuinely liked. Jack made her laugh, he made her feel normal, and appreciated. In the end, it was a sharing between two people who simply enjoyed being with one another. 

In the middle of the night, she watched Jack sleep and recalled Hannibal’s words to her, _One quality in a person doesn't rule out any other quality. They can exist side by side, good and terrible._ Jack may have pushed Will to a breaking point, may have done some unscrupulous things in the name of justice -- including plotting to murder Hannibal -- but essentially he was a good person. His qualities existed side-by-side.

As for Chiyoh? “I see the best of you and the worst with steady hands and a slow heart,” she whispered to herself. She then snuggled against Jack and fell into a deep sleep.

**+++**

When Jack woke the next morning, Chiyoh was already dressed. She sat at the table, eating a croissant. 

“Good morning,” she smiled.

“You ordered breakfast?” he asked as he sat up in bed.

“Mmmm,” she said taking a sip of coffee. “Just a little something before I go.”

“You’re leaving,” he said. It wasn’t a question, but a statement of fact. There was no sadness in his tone.

Chiyoh smiled and said, “We knew I was.”

Jack smiled, both fully aware that this was all they would ever have... and, they were both completely at peace with it. 

Jack rose from the bed, putting on a robe as he sat with Chiyoh and poured himself some coffee. 

**+++**

When she was gone, Jack stood on his balcony and thought about what had transpired the last few days. Would he ever see Chiyoh again? Probably not. What they had was lovely, it was cathartic for them both, and it was healing. 

For the first time, in a long time, Jack felt as if he could really move on with his life. He’d said it several times in the past, each time a hollow promise without any real substance. But now...things felt differently. A weight of sorrow and stagnation was lifted from his spirit.

The morning sun continued to rise and shone brightly on his face. He closed his eyes and felt it wash over him.

Walking out of the hotel, Chiyoh was alive and vibrating with excitement -- ready to face her next adventure. When she kissed Jack goodbye, she knew they would both be fine. More than fine, in fact. She smiled broadly, bright and true. 

Chiyoh lit a cigarette and then took a bite of her donut, happily making her way down the quiet Mexico City streets early in the sunlit morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Your kudos and comments give me life. <3
> 
> Come and [visit me on Tumblr](http://wrathofthestag.tumblr.com/).


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